Latin America & Caribbean Digital Communications and Media Forum 2026

Dr Allyson Leacock, Chairman of the Barbados Broadcasting Authority and Director of National Transformation Initiative, Government of Barbados, is also an independent media and human development consultant. She led a coalition of 112 Media Houses in 24 Caribbean countries for 12 years and trained over 2000 Caribbean broadcasters. She served on the Executive Board of the Global Media AIDS Initiative (GMAI) and was elected for 2 terms as Chairman of the Global Steering Committee for the World AIDS Campaign. She was also Cultural Affairs Specialist at the US Embassy covering the Caribbean and Officer-In-Charge and Student Coordinator at the University of the West Indies Distance Education Centre (UWIDEC), now the Open Campus.

Dr Allyson Leacock was conferred with the Order of the Republic (OR) in Barbados National Honours on 30 November 2023. The award was given by the President of Barbados – In ‘recognition of sterling contribution to broadcasting, media relations, corporate communications, training, human resource development and educational technology, as well as distinguished service to Barbados as Head of National Transformation Initiative’.

Dr Leacock has a wide-ranging professional background including in executive management in corporate communications, media, needs assessment, training, human resource development and leadership, as well broadcast media including production and presentation as TV News Anchor, and as General Manager of the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation.

She holds Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Educational Technology, Concordia University, Canada and BA (Double First Class Honours) in English and Education and the Diploma in Education (Dip.Ed with distinction) from Stirling University, UK. Her training also includes Diplomas in Human Resource Management, Facility Management, Arts Management and Alternative Dispute Resolution.

A Former national athlete, gymnast, dancer and actress, Dr Leacock is trained in sign language, is a volunteer with Special Olympics and Barbados Council for the Disabled.

Dr Leacock is also Former Chair of the International Institute of Communications Small Nations Regulators Forum 2021-2022.

Bruno Gili is the Executive Director of the Uruguay Innova (U+I) program of the Office of the President of the Republic. He is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a Diploma of Advanced Studies from the University of Valencia. He was a partner at CPA Ferrere from 2005 to 2023, where he led the business consulting area, focusing on strategy, innovation, and finance. He was also the managing partner of CPA Innovation.

Gili has extensive experience in institutional design and financial planning, structured finance, and risk management, and has advised public and private organizations, as well as international institutions such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the World Bank, and Fonplata.

Christian O’ Flaherty is Regional Vice-President for Latin America and The Caribbean at the Internet Society. He works with governments, policy makers, civil society, academia, companies, technical communities and other stakeholders in Latin America and The Caribbean, for an open, globally connected, secure and trustworthy Internet for everyone.

Daniel joined ICANN in May 2014 and is based in Sao Paulo, Brazil. He acted as Head of Science and Technology for the Embassy of Brazil in Seoul and holds a PhD in Management Science from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). Previously to joining ICANN, Daniel was the Executive Director for the NETmundial secretariat.

Bio coming soon…

Gustavo Gómez became Executive Director of OBSERVACOM (Latin American Observatory on Regulation, Media, and Convergence) in 2015. Prior to that he was National Director of Telecommunications and advisor to the Office of the President of Uruguay on public policy regarding audiovisual media and telecommunications during the presidency of José Mujica (2010–2014).

Mr. Gómez is a Uruguayan researcher and specialist in freedom of expression and in regulation and public policy regarding media, telecommunications, and the Internet. He has taught at public and private universities and has served as a consultant to international organizations such as UNESCO, UNDP, the OAS, the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, the World Bank, and the Carter Center.

Jacqueline Lopes is currently the Director of Institutional Relations LATAM South at Ericsson as well as a member of the Executive Committee at the company. She has 15+ years of experience in the industry and management consulting (BCG), mostly focused on Negotiations, Business Development, Corporate Affairs, Strategy, Digital Transformation and International Relations.

Ms Lopes is a Board member of TELEBRASIL; Director at ABINEE and FIESP; Co-chair of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Digital Economy Commission and Swedcham.

She is also author of a book about international negotiations.

In 2023, Ms Lopes was awarded in France as a Rising Talent, a global initiative organized by Russel & Reynolds, Lazard and INSEAD.
She has an MBA degree from INSEAD (France/Singapore) with a Merit Scholarship from Orange.  Ms Lopes also concluded an executive course at Harvard Kennedy School (USA).  She holds a master`s degree (summa cum laude) and a bachelor’s degree at Universidade de São Paulo (USP).

Javier is a senior regulatory analyst, following digital economy and media in Peru, and global tech trends across India, Singapore, and other ASEAN jurisdictions. Javier previously worked for Telefonica and for the Peruvian telecoms regulator, Osiptel. He is an economist and a lawyer with a master’s degree in Economics and Competition Law from the Toulouse School of Economics.

Bio coming soon…

Lynn Robinson became Director General of the International Institute of Communications (IIC), in March 2020.

Lynn is an experienced senior director and trustee / non exec-director, having held key senior leadership positions in the technology, built environment, regulation, accreditation and dental industries. She has extensive experience of professional membership bodies working within the full spectrum including, Regulatory bodies, Industry associations and Chambers of Commerce. Lynn is a well-known and established ambassador in these areas having led on many strategic programmes to aid engagement, growth, retention, change management, stakeholder and political engagement.

Mercedes Aramendía is Executive Director of DIG.IA-LAC (Digital Infrastructure and Open Internet Alliance for Latin America and the Caribbean). She is a lawyer, academic, and public policy expert with broad experience in telecommunications, digital transformation, innovation, and regulation.

She previously served as President of URSEC, Uruguay’s communications regulator, where she led key initiatives including the 5G spectrum auction, mobile number portability, the “Do Not Call” registry, and reforms to promote competition and modernization in the sector. She also served as President of Uruguay’s National Council for Innovation, Science and Technology (CONICYT).

Mercedes is Director of the postgraduate program in Digital Transformation and Law at the University of Montevideo and has taught and published on telecommunications, digital rights, cybersecurity, LegalTech, and artificial intelligence. She holds a PhD in Legal Science, an LL.M. from Cornell Law School, an MBA, and a Master’s degree in Economic Administrative Law.

Pablo Siris Seade is a journalist and holds a Diploma in Governance and Public Innovation from CAF and the University of Montevideo.

Since March 1, 2025, he has served as National Director of Telecommunications and Communication Services at the Ministry of Industry, Energy, and Mining (Dinatel-MIEM).

Between 2020 and 2025, he was the director representing the Frente Amplio party at the Communications Services Regulatory Unit (Ursec).

He was the general director of information and head of the Caracas bureau for the multi-state network teleSUR and head of international news for the Venezuelan News Agency.

He has served as head of institutional and corporate communications for various public and private organizations in Uruguay and Venezuela.

He has been a director and editorial coordinator, as well as an editor and columnist for various publications in Uruguay, Venezuela, and Panama.

Paola Marquez is a lawyer graduated at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. Holds a master’s degree in economics and Regulation of Public Services from Universitat de Barcelona, and a master’s degree in finance and Corporate Law from ESAN University. She is also a postgraduate professor in telecommunications, regulation and digital transformation.

She is currently the Regulatory Manager of Entel Perú. She is member of the board of the Information Communications Technology Association of the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL), and President of the Telecommunications Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) in Lima.

Paola has broad experience in public policy and regulation. She previously served as Director of Communications Projects and principal advisor at the Vice Ministry of Communications, and as an advisor to the General Secretary of the Ministry of Transports and Communications. She also worked for the Prime Minister Office and in the Ministry of Economics and Finance.

Petros Mavromichalis assumed his duties as Ambassador of the European Union for Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein on the 1st of September 2020. He looks back on a career of over 30 years in the EU institutions, first in the Commission and since 2012 at the European External Action Service (EEAS). Most recently, Petros Mavromichalis was the Head of the Open Source Intelligence Division of the Situation Centre at the EEAS. Prior to that, Petros Mavromichalis held positions in the European Commission’s Directorates-General TRADE, ENLARGEMENT and RELEX.

Petros Mavromichalis was born in Athens in 1964. He holds Master’s degrees in Law and European Law from the Université de Strasbourg and the London School of Economics. Petros Mavromichalis holds both Greek and Belgian citizenship.

Victor Ryan Biran is the Manager of the Policy, Planning and Research Department at the Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (TATT). He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Heriot-Watt University, a Master’s degree in Telecommunications Regulation and Policy (MRP) from the University of the West Indies, a BSc Computing and Information Systems and a Bachelor of Laws degree – both from the University of London. Ryan is also a Fulbright Fellow and a Commonwealth Fellow in the areas of technology management and open data respectively. He has approximately twenty years of professional experience in the Information and Communications Technology sector, ranging from ICT regulation and standardization to policy and strategy.

At TATT, Ryan is responsible for the formulation of ICT policies which guide the regulation of the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors in Trinidad and Tobago. Some of the main policy areas have been on net neutrality, over-the-top technology services (OTTs), illicit streaming, amongst others. He is also responsible for TATT’s digital divide/inclusion surveys which are conducted periodically to assess the extent of the digital divide and the conditions that are necessary for digital inclusion in Trinidad and Tobago.